Rotary device for the distribution of fluids into and from the cylinders of driving or working reciprocating machines



Oct. 28, 1958 J R. G. VAN VORST 2,857,902

ROTARY DEVICE FOR THE DISTRIBUTION OF FLUIDS INTO AND FROM THE CYLINDERS OF DRIVING OR WORKING RECIPROCATING MACHINES Filed May 31, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet l Oct. 28, 1958 Y J; R. G. VAN voRsT 2,857,902

ROTARY DEVICE FOR THE DISTRIBUTION OF FLUIDS INTO AND FROM THE CYLINDERS 0F DRIVING OR WORKING RECIPROCATING MACHINES Filed May 31. 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig.3

nited States Patent ROTARY DEVICE FOR THE DISTRIBUTION OF FLUIDS INTO AND FROM THE CYLINDERS OF EIRIVEEG R WORKING RECIPROCATING MA- The invention relates to a rotary device controlling the feeding and removal of fluids to and from the cylinders of reciprocating machines, such as engines, compressors or the like.

The rotary distribution device essentially includes a' stationary unit, a rotary unit including forming a valve, and a member forming the housing seat for the rotary unit, such member being slidably guided with respect to the stationary unit and resiliently stressed in order to press on the rotary unit.

In one embodiment the rotary unit is composed of a spherical body which is carried by a rotating shaft and which body is provided with an arcuate groove, lying substantially in a plane transverse to the rotational axis. A guide block is built into the stationary unit, and said block is designed to slidably house and guide a substantially annular member which provides a communicating passage to the cylinder and which is resiliently stressed against the spherical body, said annular member being shaped in such a way as to form a spherical surface crown seat, through which it contacts the spherical body. Both an intake conduit and an exhaust conduit are arranged in the stationary unit, in the same plane wherein the track is lo cated in the spherical body. In the feed conduit, when it is used with, for instance, an internal combustion engine, or at least in one of the conduits, there is provided a member resiliently stressed against the rotary unit, the conduit being formed in said member and designed to assure the seal with the rotary unit along an annular seat, having the same profile as the sphere or ball forming the valve of the rotary unit.

The accompanying drawings show certain embodiments of the invention, used with an internal combustion engine.

In said drawing:

Fig. 1 shows a section of the head of a mono-cylinder block, taken along the line II of Fig. 2;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line II-II of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line III-III of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of an annular sealing element;

Fig. 5 is a sectional view of a cylinder block, according to a modified form of the invention.

In Figs. 1 to 4 of the drawings, 1 denotes a finned block which forms the head 2 of the cylinder. The block 1 is applied to the block having the cylinder itself therein and which is not shown in the drawing. A second finned block 3 is mounted atop the body 1 so as to form a seat for a rotary unit including a shaft and the bearing supports for said unit, in addition to forming intake and exhaust conduits.

The assembly of the two blocks 1, 2 defines a cavity 4, 4a extending transversely with respect to the geometrical axis of the cylinder, and seats for the bearings 5 and 6 are formed in the walls of said cavity; said bearings mounting a shaft 7 adapted to be driven in a con ventional manner by the engines shaft (not shown).

2,857,902 Patented Oct. 28, 1958 The shaft 7 forms a portion of the rotaryrunit which, in this embodiment, includes a spherical body 8 wherein there is provided a track or groove 8a extending parallel to a plane perpendicular to the geometrical axis of the shaft 7, the track being arcuate and encompassing slightly less than the half of the circumference of the sphere.

A cavity is formed in the block 1 between the chamber 2 and the cavity 4, 4a and extends into the housing 4b for the sphere; a member 10 is threadably engaged in said cavity and is provided with a passage 11 adapted to communicate with the track 8a. The member 10 is provided with an annular cylindrically walled housing 12,

wherein an annular member 13 may be axially moved and said annular member 13 has at its inner edge a spherically shaped annular seat 13a, corresponding to the spherical profile of the body 8. A spring 14 is housed in an annular recess 13b of the annular member 13 and acts between the bottom of the housing 12 and said ring 13 in order to stress said member 13 against the spherical body 8, against which the annular member 13 bears with its spherical surface 13a.

The ring 13 is innerly provided with a shoulder, and a similar coacting shoulder in the member 10 forms a labyrinth passage such as the one denoted by 15 in Figure 4 and which also provides a scaling function.

The assembled blocks 1 and 3, including the slot 8a, form on one side an exhaust conduit 16 and on the other side the seat for a cylindrical member 18 which is stressed by a spring 19 towards the spherical body 8, the spring acting against a threaded collar 20. The cylindrical member 18 is centrally provided with a feed conduit 21, whose inner end has its edge 22 provided with a spherical surface portion adapted to contact the surface of the body 8. This assures a seal between the cylindrical member 18 and the spherical body 8 in a manner equivalent to that of the seat 13a.

The ring 13 is provided with a projection 23 housed in a seat in the block 1 and is partly shaped as an extension of the spherical surface 13a. This projection 23 aids the outward flow of the hot exhaust gases to the conduit 16, in the case of an internal combustion engine.

The operation is similar to that of other known rotary distribution or timing systems; the rotation of the assem bly 7, 8 (Fig. 1) first makes a communication between the conduit 21 and the chamber 2 through the track 8a and the passage 11. Continuing the rotation of the body 8 in the direction of the arrow of Fig. l, the passage 11 is closed for the time required to effect the timing in the cylinder, during which the passage 11 is closed. Then track 8a establishes the communication between the conduit 11 and the passage 16 for the exhaust of the gas.

The form of the track 8a and the rotational velocity of the shaft 7 with respect to the shaft of the connecting rod of the cylinder is determined by the type of operation of the cylinder, for instance, as a two stroke engine, or as a four stroke engine, or as a compressor.

In all cases the seal is obtained with regard to the passage 11 by means of the surface 13a of the ring 13 and with respect to the conduit 21, when required, by means of the surface 22 of the cylindrical member 18, and eventuallyalso when required-with regard to the conduit 16 in an arrangement equivalent to that of the cylindrical member 18.

Through suitable connections such as those shown at 25, 26, it is possible to establish a circulation of oil for lubrication and for cooling, through the cavities 4, 4a and through conventional grooves in the seat 417, as well as through appropriate grooves out along the shaft 7 and in the body 8.

A modified form of the invention shown in Figs. 1 to 4 is disclosed in Fig. 5 wherein two rotary units 30, 31 are provided and are arranged in communication with the 3 cylinder 32, one co-operating with a feed conduit 33 and the other with an exhaust conduit 34. Each rotary unit 30 and 31 includes an annular sealing element 35 and 36 respectively, each resiliently stressed against its own ro-.

tary unit and the feed conduit is also provided, in this case, with a resiliently stressed element 37 which assures the seal.

The device has the following advantages:

(A) Sealing difficulties are eliminated assuring an elastic contact between the movable unit and the stationary one.

(B) Friction is greatly reduced by the elasticity between contacting surfaces.

(C) Lubrication is improved by the possibility of operating in a bath of oil.

(D) Cooling difiiculties are contained within reasonable ranges, considering the small portion of the valve sphere exposed to heat, with respect to the total mass of the rotary member, which provides an efficient removal of heat.

(E) Friction difficulties during starting and stopping are remarkably reduced, owing to the small portion of surfaces of the relatively movable parts in actual contact and hence losses of mechanical efficiency are contained within very low ranges.

(F) It is possible to accelerate rapidly.

(G) There is a maximum ease in maintenance, repairs, and replacement with respect to previous apparatus of this kind.

While but two forms of the invention have been shown and described herein, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that many minor modifications may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention or the scope of the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. A structure for mounting upon an engine block provided with a vertical cylinder and having a vertically reciprocable piston therein comprising a first block attachable to the upper face of said engine block to form the head thereof and having a cavity extending vertically therethrough in registry with said cylinder, a hollow member threadably mounted in the upper portion of said cavity, a second block mounted atop said first block in spaced relation thereto to form a chamber therebetween, a first annular sealing member vertically slidable in the upper end portion of said hollow member, spring means upwardly urging said first sealing member, bearings mounted in said chamber between said first and second blocks at either side of said sealing member, a rotary shaft extending horizontally between said first and second blocks and mounted in said bearings, a spherical valve formed integrally with said shaft and bearing against said first sealing member, an intake conduit extending horizontally between said first and second blocks to said valve and perpendicularly to said shaft, an exhaust conduit extending horizontally between said first and second blocks to the diametrically opposite side of said valve with respect to said intake conduit, and in inwardly urged second sealing member mounted in said intake conduit and bearing against said valve, said valve having an arcuate cutout portion extending inwardly from its outer face and adapted to successively interconnect the intake conduit with said cavity and said cavity with said exhaust conduit.

2. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein the major axis of said cutout portion is perpendicular to the axis of said shaft.

3. A device as defined in claim 1 wherein the lower face of said second block is provided with a recess for receiving the upper portion of said'valve in spaced relation thereto.

4. A cylinder head, an intake conduit extending into one side thereof and an exhaust conduit extending into the opposite side thereof, a spherical valve mounted in each of said conduits and each provided with an arcuate cutout portion extending inwardly from the surface thereof, and spring-pressed sealing member mounted in each of said conduits on each side of each of said valves.

5. A device as defined in claim 4 wherein the major axis of said cutout portion is perpendicular to the axis of said shaft.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,057,297 Tartrais Mar. 25, 1913 1,128,757 Chandler Feb. 16, 1915 1,139,101 Chandler May 11, 1915 1,209,390 Brown Dec. 19, 1916 1,506,185 Lehman Aug. 26, 1924 1,880,745 Boukard Oct. 4, 1932 1,977,025 Vander Elst et al Oct. 16, 1934 2,048,134 Montalto July 21, 1936 FOREIGN PATENTS 775,975 France Oct. 22, 1934 OTHER REFERENCES Ser. No. 371,803, Heylandt et al. (A. P. C.), published May 11, 1943. 

